Employee Spotlight – Andrea Ten Kley

Change is a constant for Netrush, and is just as apparent in Andrea Ten Kley’s life. After growing up in Oregon City, Andrea moved to Portland in 2006, living in a different part of the city each year, until ultimately moving to Camas in 2010. Her last name changed from Mitzel to Ten Kley when she got married less than a year ago. And as one of Netrush’s veteran employees, Andrea has moved positions more than just about any other team member, giving her a wealth of experience and knowledge about our operations, brands, and cross-department synergy.

We sat down with Andrea to learn more about her, as well as her experience at Netrush.

Can you tell me about each different role you’ve been in at Netrush?

I started as a Primary Account Specialist, assisting the brand managers with summary ordering, compliance, marketing, and content. From there, I transitioned into a brand manager role while managing a team of specialists. We were growing quickly even back then, wearing a lot of different hats. When more people joined the team, our departments became a lot more focused. I thought I would be a good fit for the content team, and transitioned into a content specialist. That was great. I liked working on the content team, but when there was an opening in customer service, I saw a new opportunity for my skill set. I thought that someone who had been working at Netrush for a long time should fill that role — somebody who knows how Netrush works on a broader scale. That’s how I ended up as Customer Service Manager. With all my roles, I’ve always gone where I saw a need.

How is your current role at Netrush different?

It’s more public facing. There’s more on my shoulders — I handle feedback on our seller account, where we have to make sure people are happy. People need to have good experiences so we can grow.

What do you do to stay enthusiastic about your role at Netrush?

Part of it is easy because things change so much. That makes it pretty easy to want to come to work — you want to see what’s going to happen each day. Meeting people and getting to know people here has been really fun for me.

What are some things you’ve noticed that have changed at Netrush? The culture has always been good, but it’s just exploded to be something pretty cool. We would have fun things, like potlucks, but now we have the infrastructure to do some really cool stuff. Also the building — there were just nine cubicles when I started.

What are some good things that have stayed the same?

I think our competitive nature — everyone is striving to be the best. We’re a lot bigger now than we were, but I admire that about Brian and Chris; they’re always thinking we can be bigger and better.

When not at work, what are some things you like to do?

I like to hang out with my dogs. I’m known for going home at lunch to let my dogs out. I have a French bulldog named Lola, she’ll be seven in July, and I have a mutt named Tugg who’s a German shepherd, husky, and golden mix. My husband rescued him in Alaska when he was up there working as a fishing boat captain for his family’s salmon fishing business.

I also enjoy working out; I built a home gym in my basement. I also like to spend time with my husband, and we’re into trying new restaurants and bars and stuff.